The Originals: Even Evil Vampires get Tired
by martykate
Summary: Tristan, the 2100 year old vampire is amused and suspicious when he finds out about a vampire names Klaus who is calling himself the oldest vampire. He takes his mortal lover Isolde and his Roman vampire Fabi and their two younger vampire brothers to find out what Klaus is up to
1. Chapter 1

"How much longer, Tristan?" Our Range Rover is comfortable, but we'd been driving a long time. Even Isolde, Tristan's lover, was feeling the effects of the drive, even if she'd slept most of the time. I don't know why Tristan allowed her to come, except that she and Tristan give the appearance of an average middle age couple, which has come in handy.

Oh, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Stephen, I was made a vampire about a year ago. Tristan rescued me, made me a vampire, and gave me back my life after it had almost been taken in an attack on campus after a basketball game. I caught and killed the three guys who almost killed me, but Tristan still isn't too happy about it.

Tristan, Fabi, and Claude make up the rest of our group. Tristan was made a vampire before Rome established its empire. Tristan saved Fabi, or Fabian, and turned him, too. Fabi is a few hundred years younger than him, something he considers insignificant, but I don't. Claude was saved and turned by Tristan on Napoleon's Retreat from Moscow. My death pales in comparison to theirs, I was never a member of any army.

Isolde was rescued by Tristan, too. He found her, nearly dead, in a dumpster and rescued her. He hasn't turned her, he doesn't want to. Isolde mostly doesn't care, but I've heard them arguing about it. Isolde is over 40 but is fantastically beautiful. She has short auburn hair, wears glasses, and I've seen guys my age, which in human years is 20, turn and stare at her when she walks by.

Tristan must have been around her age when he was turned. Together they make a striking couple. Tristan is the classiest dresser I've ever seen, elegant, sophisticate, but understated. He likes to shop Isolde and every month or so she cleans out her closet and makes a donation to Goodwill, or some other charity. He knows exactly what she likes and when they dress up to go out she looks like a vision. You just have to see them together to know what I say when I mean that they were meant for each other, even if they are vampire and human.

We live well, so we can afford to take off and go to Virginia and New Orleans like we are. I've taken a leave from school because Tristan wanted all of us together, especially to look after Isolde. We're on our way to a small town called "Mystic Falls" to talk to some vampires who live there to see if we can find out about a family who think they are the "original vampires".

It's become kind of a joke to Fabi. I've learned that vampires date back to the Sumerians or even older, Tristan only knows about the Sumerians and Egyptians. Yeah, vampires go a long way back which is why Tristan is curious about these vampires who think they are the original vampires. As far as I can tell it shouldn't matter one way or another, but for Fabi it's a matter of pride. The arrogant little Roman wants to let them know that he's a lot older so they're not as original as they think.

Tristan is worried, though Tristan worries a lot. He must know more than he's telling us, which is why he brought along Fabi, who is a vicious killer with a Greek God face. I think he is suspicious of the head of the family. There's rumors he's heard that he's not revealing to us, or maybe Fabi knows, because Tristan tells him everything.

Anyway, we're a long ways from Seattle. When Isolde gets too tired we get a hotel, first class of course, for the night. Otherwise, we drive. I guess we're almost there and I'll be glad for the chance to go out and hunt. We're taking turns feeding so we can make good time. It's my turn now and my fangs are aching. I'd like to sink them into the first convenient neck I can find.

I wake to find Tristan turning the Rover into a long driveway. We've left Claude and Isolde in town to find a hotel room, in the meantime we're checking things out here. The house is big, but we have mansions at home even bigger that belong to the old families as well as software moguls. This house is older though, and when we walk up the stairs I feel like I'm stepping back in time, which is happening a lot to me lately. Tristan says it must be some latent ability that I've started to develop. Whatever it is, I can almost see the presence of people who've lived there before and their stories are pretty sad ones.

Fabi knocks at the door and a pretty vampire girl with long brown hair answers. She looks at us and says, yes, somewhat rudely but I don't blame her. We don't belong here and we know it.

Fabi saves the day, he takes her hand and kisses it, which amuses her. He then proceeds to introduce her to himself, Tristan and me and asks for Damon Salvatore.

The vampire has the palest face I've ever seen and pale blue eyes. His hair is as black as Fabi's, though he looks older by about ten years. The look he's giving us isn't exactly friendly, but when we tell him we're trying to find out about the originals, he grows more friendly and invites us in.

He pours whisky for all of us, which I can use. Then we all sit down and he asks us point blank, "Why do you want to find out about Klaus."

Tristan and Fabi are in charge of the talking, I'm instructed to listen. "Well, for one thing," says Tristan, "I'd like to find out why vampires half my age think they are the original vampires. I've also heard that this Klaus," I notice he says the name with some distaste, "Calls himself a hybrid. I've heard that werewolf bites are killing vampires, but that's not the case with Fabi and myself. We're natural sun walkers, and the vampires I've made can walk in the sun also. And I believe that Fabi and myself would be immune to him and his hybrids, as well as were wolf bites."

This surprises Damon, matter of fact he looks incredulous. It's obvious that he doesn't know much about his kind either. The vampire girl comes up and puts her hand on Damon's shoulder, introducing herself as Elena.

"Is this true?" she asks, "We've never heard about this.

I'm in shock. Elena is beautiful and reminds me of my murdered girlfriend, Julie. Julie was slim and beautiful with a mane of dark brown hair, just like her. Julie had the bluest I'd ever seen though, and Elena's are a deep, chocolate brown. The high cheekbones, the delicate features are the same. Not exactly alike, but close.

And I'm staring too hard, she gives me a dirty look. I envy Fabi getting to kiss her hand. I'd like to do a little kissing and more with this girl, but Damon is staring at me really hard. I don't blame him, not really.

Another vampire walks in the door and introduces himself as "Stefan", since I am "Stephen" it's kind of funny and he's nice enough to joke about it with me. He gives Elena looks of longing, so she must have been with him before she was with Damon. I don't blame him, if I was the one who lost her I'd regret losing her too. I'd like to know what happened but it's none of my business. If we were friends I'd talk to him about Julie. His brother doesn't exactly look like the sympathetic type, especially since he doesn't seem to show guilt about stealing his brother's girl.

We haven't been able to get much more information than, yes, this guy Klaus does exist and he claims to be the original vampire. Damon looks rather amused at the prospect of Klaus finding out he's not, and Elena wants to go to New Orleans for the fun, but she's told "no" and does not look happy. I guess Klaus is in for a big surprise when he finds out about us, especially when he finds out that he can't hurt Fabi and Tristan. Claude and I are a different matter, but Tristan can pretty much flatten Klaus and get his blood to cure us.

Stefan and Elena look like they want to go with us. Damon doesn't seem like the head of this family, but he's really possessive of Elena and she seems reluctant to go against him. I think she and Stefan have had run-ins with Klaus and would like to get even. Personally, I'd like to help her but Damon seems set on keeping her in Mystic Falls with him. We have room in the Range Rover if Stefan wants to come, and I hope Tristan asks him, he seems like a right on kind of guy.

Tristan is anxious to check on Isolde. To my relief he asks Stefan if he'd like to come to New Orleans with us. He'll come by tomorrow and if he wants to, he can tell us then. I don't know why we don't take Stefan with us now, but I've learned not to second guess Tristan. He always has a reason for the things he does. Vampire wise, I'm only a year old. I'm not about to question the wisdom of a 2100 year old vampire. Tristan saved my life, I'm his brother now. I can't wait until we get to New Orleans and meet this guy Klaus and his family. I want to see Tristan kick his ass, especially since he hurt Elena.

Tomorrow, we're on the road.


	2. Chapter 2

We drive back to the center of town and go to a small restaurant called the "Mystic Grill". No four star restaurants here like Isolde prefers, but she's flexible. She's drinking a glass of red wine, and looking at her little computer that she takes on trips. Fortunately there must be Wi-Fi here, because she's on the internet.

Tristan slides in next to her and kisses her. "Find anything, cherie?"

She shakes her head, "No, no 'original vampires' or any nonsense like that. Weren't these vampires from Bulgaria, or somewhere in the Balkans? They quit being civilized when the Roman Empire dissolved. If they were villagers they wouldn't have known much about the greater world at large, even the priest wouldn't have been very educated, except for the church's teachings."

"I've looked up werewolves and nowhere can I find any reference to a werewolf's bite killing a vampire. Since no one really believes in these things, maybe it's true and we don't know it. I know I didn't believe in vampires." She looked up and saw people staring at her. "This is a very strange little town," she said under her breath.

We all ordered dinner for appearance's sake. I still crave solid food sometimes, even though I don't need it. When Isolde sits down and eats, sometimes I eat too. We usually open a couple of bottles of red wine and Claude and Fabi will join us. We laugh and joke and talk and if an outsider were to see us, he wouldn't know anything was out of the ordinary. That's the kind of front we're trying to present now.

The hotel isn't much, but it's comfortable and clean. Tristan and Isolde have their own room away from us. Claude, Fabi, and I hang out in the room for a while, then decide to go to the Mystic Grill to play pool.

We get there and see Damon and Elena. He motions us over like he wants something. We look at each other and Fabi shrugs and we go over there. I remind myself that Elena is off limits. We don't want trouble and for some reason, this is feeling important.

They're both good at playing pool, but I'm no slouch myself. Damon wins the game, and I'm up. He lets me rack, trying to be nice, I'm sure he figures he'll beat me.

"So when are you leaving?" It seems a harmless question, but I bet this guy doesn't do anything without reason.

While I busy myself with clearing the table, Fabi takes over. "We're leaving tomorrow, we'll probably take about three days to get there. We're staying at the Hilton until we decide how long we'll stay. We don't exactly have letters of introduction, so we don't know how long it will take to find _him._" We all know what "him" means.

"We've spent time in New Orleans, we know the city fairly well. I'm sure many of the old haunts are still there, we just want to be careful. Claude and Stephen will need to be careful, but they will be looked after. If he hears about us, he may seek us out, saving us the trouble. Once we make contact, we'll decide what to do from there."

Damon put his pool cue away, and Claude, who is almost as good as me at pool, takes over. We let Fabi and Damon talk, it's our job to listen and watch. I can see Elena's interest in her eyes. I bet she wants to go, too. She's interested, skeptical, and a little scared.

I asked her if she'd like to go outside with me while I have a cigarette—a habit I've picked up from the others. It's not like it's going to kill me now. Damon starts to object, but Fabi's chocolate eyes—so like Elena's—lock with his, and he shrugs.

I get my jacket and help her on with hers. She wants to go, I can tell. I hope I can get her to tell me why.

I light the cigarette that I bummed from Fabi, take a few hits, then put it out in disgust. Elena finds this very funny and ask me why I wanted to smoke in the first place and I explain to her that Fabi's cigarette tastes really bad. She then takes a pack of Marlboros out of pocket and offers me one.

I light mine, then hers and ask her why do you want to come? She looks at me for a moment, and I see tears welling in her eyes.

"Klaus killed my Aunt Jenna, and me. No one's strong enough around here to do anything about it, but it sounds like Tristan can. Klaus has threatened me, he's threatened my brother. He turned Stefan into a monster, for a while at least. I want to help you, I want him brought down. Does that sound like a good enough reason?" Her beautiful eyes plead with me, and my heart breaks at the sight of her. I want to kiss her, but don't want to cross her boyfriend Damon, he's more than I can handle and I know it.

"I don't think anyone could say it's not." I want to hold her hand, hug her, something, but she's off limits.

I suddenly feel very clever because I have an idea. "Why don't you come with us, Elena? Stefan is coming." I see her react to this, maybe she still cares for him. I push on. "You'd be very safe. This Klaus guy, whoever he is, is going to be no match for Tristan and Fabi. I doubt he's ever seen a vampire as old as Tristan. He thinks all vampires are vulnerable to werewolf bites, but he doesn't know that Tristan and Fabi can take him out in a heartbeat, no matter how many times he bite them. They're immune, and if he hurts you or me or Claude or Stefan, Tristan can force the blood out of him to cure us. You'd like to get even with Klaus, wouldn't you?"

Bingo, I've got her, I can tell. My biggest fear is that that jerk Damon is going to come along to keep an eye on her, ruining whatever chance I might have. She lays a slender hand on my cheek and kisses it, then goes back in to the grill. That's as far as I'm probably going to get with her, but it was better than nothing at all.

In the morning all three of them are waiting for us. Damon and Stefan both know where Klaus is, so Stefan will ride with us. I'm disappointed, but it's not unexpected. There's not enough room for all of us in the Rover, and if he wants to make a quick retreat, Damon has his car.

The only reason he's coming is because of Elena. If I were him, I'd do the same thing. He's driving a blue Chevy Camaro SS and I'd give my eyeteeth to own one just like it. I may ask Tristan for one of those instead of the Corvette I asked for, but nah, I'll stick with the 'Vet.

Tristan gets direction, draws a map, and we're off. It's a beautiful time of year, a beautiful spring day, perfect for a road trip. Isolde starts to make small talk with Stefan and soon she's drawing him out. Either he thinks this is perfectly normal, or he's impressed with Isolde's nonchalance at his being a vampire. Soon he is laughing and talking with the rest of us, as if we weren't the craziest group of vampires he's ever seen.

We reach the outskirts of a small town and it takes a few minutes for him to figure out why. It's obvious that the thought of hunting is making him anxious. We're not sure why, but we intend to find out. We don't drink out of blood bags, we're hunters. We don't ignore our vampire natures or urges.

"Okay boys, out of the car, you too, Stefan." Tristan has taken over. He's going to take care of whatever is bothering Stefan. He's a good guide, a good counselor. He has taught all of us how to be a vampire, how to deal with our natures. We were watched over from the time he created us, never leaving us on our own. It's been a year and he still nurse maids me, but I don't mind. Tristan has helped me transition, making me feel at ease, encouraging and comforting me when I was scared and unsure. He's a really good guy.

He puts his arm around Stefan's shoulders and they talk. Then I see him put his hands on either side of his head and begin to talk softly to him. I purposely don't listen to what he's telling him, but I see Stefan's shoulders slump and his posture soften. He claps him on his back and says something encouraging, and by the time they join us, Stefan's fear is gone.

The sun has gone down, and the moon is dark. Perfect. We are outside a small town and it is almost criminal the way we snatch people and feed. Tristan and Fabi feed much less than we do, but Stefan, Claude and I are greedy. Tristan gives his catch to Stefan, watching to make sure he doesn't take any more blood than he needs, and the victim is left alive. I know what will come next, Tristan and Fabi hypnotize their victims and erase their memories. Vampires with a heart, I guess you could call them, but neither really like killing. I guess the Roman Army cured that.

Stefan is looking much more relaxed, and I ask Claude what happened.

"Stefan is a ripper," Claude explained.

"What's that?"

"The kind of vampire Tristan has taught us not to be. Rippers are really fucked up, some can help it because they made themselves that way. Maybe it wasn't their choice, I guess trauma can trigger it. Every vampire has the potential to be a ripper, but most suppress those urges if they feel them. Stefan is a good guy." I nod in agreement, Stefan does seem to be a good guy. "But something happened to him and the Ripper took over. I take it Klaus was responsible for the last episode."

"Has Tristan cured him?" I'm hoping the answer is yes, but Claude shook his head.

"Tristan can teach him how to control himself, but it's up to Stefan to make the choice of what he wants to be. Look, Tristan has found Isolde a restaurant. I don't want to talk about Rippers right now, we've got plenty of evil to deal with when we get to New Orleans.

We were back on road early the next morning. We fed at Dawn while it was still dark, and Elena gave up any pretense of wanting to drink from the blood bags. I felt sort of bad, like we'd been a bad influence, but we didn't make up her mind for her. For me, I feel a kind of freedom in hunting that's hard to describe. Claude would only use bagged blood if there were no other choice and he needed to feed. Tristan and Fabi would just wait for the opportune moment, they weren't like us, so much time had passed that they fed only when they wanted to, not out of need.

I watched Elena stalk a teenage boy she had seen at a gas station. He'd looked at her, and she smiled, flirtatious. He started following her and she led him further and further away from us, into a small copse where the leaves on the trees still looked black in the dim light. A few minutes later she'd returned, wiping her mouth.

"What?" She looked kind of irritated at Damon's look of disapproval. Maybe she loved him, maybe not. She seemed too young and pretty for someone jaded like him. He was possessive, not liking to let her out of his sight, and now that she was with us she seemed to be rebelling. "Stop suffocating me," I heard her say to him as she stalked off.

We were making good time, in spite of our stops, and weren't far from New Orleans, now. We were gathering in Tristan and Isolde's room at night, Tristan asking questions about Klaus and his family. Stefan, Damon, and Elena could share what they'd learned from personal experience, but Tristan wasn't satisfied.

"We can't proceed without knowing what we're dealing with. We know about him, he doesn't know about us. The biggest risk is to you children—compared to Tristan and Fabi we were children, but Damon clearly didn't like being told he was a child.

"I can send Fabi in there, but what Klaus must have his numbers now. I'm not going to send Fabi in to be killed. The three of you," by this he meant, Stefan, Damon, and Elena, know him. Elena, I won't send you, but Stefan or Damon, one of you is going to have to pay him a visit before I introduce him to my brothers. And at all costs, we must find a safe place for Isolde. I was going to rent a hotel room in the Quarter, but I'm thinking about renting a house in the Garden District."

"There's other vampires in New Orleans besides Klaus and company. It shouldn't take long to find the vampire bars. I've learned that gossip can be a very useful tool. Someone is bound to know about them, someone who likes to talk. All we have to do is find him or her. I haven't been here in almost a hundred years, but I used to have a few friends who might still be around."

"We arrive in New Orleans tomorrow. I suggest you talk among yourselves and plan your strategy. For myself, I'd like to take this Klaus down, it sounds like he's doing too much damage, and I like for people to be able to live their lives without worrying about vampires, like a poorly written Bram Stoker novel. I've spent centuries living under the wire, and I don't want to have my peaceful kingdom disturbed. Good night, and we will see you in the morning. Now's the time to shares ideas amongst yourselves if you have any, and if you don't, figure out what you can do to get some."


	3. The Big Easy

We arrived in New Orleans at twilight. I woke just as soon as we reached the outskirts of the city, watching it change from low income housing to progressively better and better until we finally reached the Hilton at the edge of the Vieux Carre. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, it had been years since I'd been to New Orleans and I found myself getting caught up in the magic of the city.

We'd opened the windows and you could smell the river, even from the freeway. The city seemed to be singing to me, luring me out of the car, an urge so powerful that suddenly I felt Claude pulling me back—I'd started to open the door and was one foot of the car.

Tristan said nothing as he pulled up to the front of the hotel and handed the keys to the valet. As usual, he'd booked the biggest available suite in the hotel and a large one for us not far down the hall. They had an extra room in their suite and decided that Elena would stay with them, which seemed to bother only Damon.

I looked around at the lobby of the hotel, gawking like a kid. The ceilings were high, with huge geometric chandeliers, and everywhere you looked there was glass and steel. The valets came and took our bags, along with the packs the Mystic Falls crew had packed. Tristan led us to an elevator that was situated so that you could view the city as you traveled up this impossibly tall building. You could see all of the Quarter, along with the Mississippi and the paddleboats that ferried tourists up the river.

I lost track of the floors, but we must have been near the top when we disembarked from the elevator. Up here it was quiet, deep carpets muffled the sounds of our footsteps. Tristan and Isolde stepped into a suite that was beyond anything I'd ever dreamed of. A huge living room, complete with a bouquet of roses on the table. Gold and white furniture and wallpaper, I even saw a Monet and a Matisse on the wall. Elena's bedroom was huge, complete with her own flat screen television and a stereo.

We were herded into a room a short ways from theirs. There were two bedrooms, each with two king size beds. One of us would have to sleep on the sofa, but it looked big and comfortable and hey! This was the Hilton, we could order up anything we wanted. Tristan and Isolde liked to travel like royalty, so I guess that for the moment we could consider ourselves princes.

Damon was glaring at Stefan, so Elena must have separated herself from him. That meant that it was open season for her. Illogically he was blaming his brother for what had happened. There were now four of us who would be competing for her attention. Fabi was out of the running because, as he said, Elena was too young and new. I was waiting for my chance, if it came, but if she preferred Claude I'd understand—he's a good guy. She had history with Stefan which would not hurt his chances, and it was obvious that Damon was not going to give up. I knew Fabi well enough to know that he would try and referee us "children" as he was wont to call Claude and me.

Elena knocked on the door and Fabi answered, letting her in. She was a pretty girl, but now she was a knock out. She was dressed in a white pantsuit that belonged to Isolde, and it emphasized her tawny skin. Around her neck was a pearl choker, and she wore pearl and diamond earrings in her ears. For fun she'd put on some of Isolde's Chanel Number Five, so she not only looked beautiful, she smelled the same way.

She let us take her in for a moment then said, "If you want, we can go to Arnaud's for a human dinner." The irony of how she put it was not lost on us. "After dinner, Tristan suggested that we might want to explore the Quarter, maybe visit the bars on Bourbon Street. He and Isolde are going to search for a house to rent in the Garden District tomorrow, maybe even one to buy if the price is right. Isolde said that if you can come up with decent enough clothes you really ought to go with us. Tristan says he wants to have a look around, and since we know Klaus is probably here…" Her voice trailed off.

Claude, Fabi, and I were prepared, but Stefan and Damon were dependent upon Tristan for the loan of suitable clothes. When we came down to the lobby we were quite a site, Elena in white, Isolde in a black and white sheath with diamonds sparkling in her ears, on either side of Tristan wearing a charcoal grey suit and tie. Damon looks jealous.

Arnaud's probably has a dress code, but we will probably get in. I'm sure Isolde packed for the three of us because Fabi, Claude, and I are all wearing suits. By tomorrow I am sure that Damon and Stefan will have something more dressy and appropriate for the restaurants Isolde likes. I will say this for the Salvatores, they have deferred to Isolde every step of the way. Even Damon is on his best behavior when he is around her. Isolde can somehow bring out the best in anyone, even jerks like Damon.

We have a booth back in the corner, not so isolated as we wish, but we can carry on a fairly private conversation. French is of no use here, most of the Quarter speaks it, or the Creole patois. Instead we speak softly in voices that no mortal can hear, breaking off into normal conversation when waiters come near.

"So," says Tristan, "You want to find Klaus, I want to find Klaus, but now is not necessarily the time. The Quarter vampires have no doubt started to come out for the evening, so you have a place to start. If you want to feed, I recommend you not do it on Bourbon Street, or anywhere in the Vieux Carre, do it in the darker neighborhoods, there are plenty of slums to choose from. And if you do hear any rumors about him, I want you to come to me first. He needs to know he has someone to fear—me. I can protect you, though I expect that he thinks himself invulnerable."

"I'm not here to overthrow him, if you will, but I want to learn of any plots, or any threats to any creature, vampire, wolf, or human. I've survived more than he's even dreamed of. I am not the strongest or the oldest of immortal creatures, but at my age I no longer have an Achilles heel. The same holds through for Fabi. Not many vampires reach our age or beyond, but with age comes power. I believe we will come as quite a surprise for your friend Klaus. But keep in mind you children need to take care. Look to Fabi for protection, he can take care of you. In the mean time, as soon dinner is finished, go out and begin your search, but be sure tell me what you find out."

Damon and Stefan are chafing at the bit, ready to take off, but clearly resent being told to defer to Fabi. Elena holds no such resentment, she enjoys Fabi's attention, and clearly having Claude and I to flirt with suits her just fine. She's shaken off Damon and wants to try her wings. It's like putting on Isolde's clothes has given her a new persona, has set her free. She certainly does not resemble the girl we picked up in Mystic Falls. I like the new Elena very much.

At the end of the meal, Tristan orders Isolde's favorite champagne, La Grand Dame. I hate to ask how much it costs in a restaurant, I know how much it costs at home. The waiter asks if we wouldn't prefer Dom Perignom, but Isolde knows champagne and the waiter respects that. There is just enough in the bottle to satisfy all eight of us. Tristan pays the tab, in cash, and we leave the restaurant, every eye on Elena. It makes me feel proud.

We walk to a deserted alleyway and Tristan addresses us. "Don't try to find Klaus tonight. Find out what you can about him, find out where he is, who his companions are, who his enemies are, but leave him alone. I want him to see me when we finally confront him. These upstart vampires who claim names for themselves tend to be cowards in my experience, but even still, a coward can be dangerous. Stefan, Damon, Claude, Stephen, you are especially in danger. If you are bitten by Klaus or one of his hybrids you will die without Klaus's blood. Fabi and I stand a better chance of forcing Klaus's blood from him than Fabi would on his own." Tristan and Isolde leave us on our own.

"Come on," said Fabi, "Let's go vampire hunting. For tonight, at least, let's stay together. I've spotted at least five since we left the hotel. This city is just teeming with the undead. All that food we ate has made me hungry for some good Creole blood. Stefan, you've spent time here, where are we most likely to run into our southern brethren."

"There was a bar Klaus used to like, on the edge of the Garden District. Once you left the Garden District the neighborhood started getting a little shabby, and there were little jazz joints here and there. It was Prohibition and cops didn't like to linger in the neighborhood, it had a bad reputation. It bordered the Irish Channel and was not all that far from the river. I imagine that the bars are gone and houses have replaced them, but I'm sure the neighborhood hasn't changed all that much."

"Then that's where we go. Tristan has forbidden us to go hunting on Bourbon Street, so the Garden District it is. Ah, it's been so long since I've done any traveling and tasted foreign blood. I'm looking forward to this."

Looking forward to what? This was a different, looser Fabi than I knew. To me he'd always been the highly disciplined Roman soldier, an air he seemed to carry with him. When Tristan was not around, he automatically took charge, but now he seemed to have let go of that icy control that was so much a part of him. Anyway, whatever. Like a good soldier, wherever he led, I intended to follow.

We followed silently, as only vampires can, from the French Quarter to the Garden District. Here it was less touristy, more city. Old houses, Creole architecture, once the home of the "Yankees" as opposed to the French. Some of the houses were falling to seed, but the magnificence of their design still proudly evident. I hoped that Tristan would buy one of these, he had a touch for transforming old houses and Isolde would work a miracle on the interior. It would have to be solitary, secluded, but the hum of insects and the scent of night blooming jasmine was luring me, telling me that this was where I belonged.

Fabi spotted a lone pedestrian, and taking Stefan, he crept quietly up to him, then dragged him off out of our sight. A short time later they emerged, carefully wiping their faces. Tristan had been serious when he said that Stefan was not to feed alone. I'd feed later and Elena didn't seem interested, but soon Damon and Claude had found prey, dragging the bodies off where they would be difficult to find.

We were having no luck in the Garden District, so decided to try the Irish Channel neighborhood, closer to the river, easier to dump unwanted bodies. It was possible that we might have passed Klaus's home, Stefan didn't think so, but neither did he know. For now it was best that we search for our kind, and try to access the "vampire grapevine" and get news of him that way.

Vampires move so quietly that not even the sharp ears of a cat can hear us. Tristan is always careful not to startle Isolde, unless he does it on purpose. We're moving like that now, even the tapping of Elena's stiletto heels is muffled, and our eyes shift back and forth trying to see the faintest of shadows moving under a tree, or moving through a yard. We move through alleys between houses, listening, because we know someone is there who does not want to be found, and we want very badly to find them.

We stepped out of the residential area to where a group of ramshackle building stood, some adorned with neon lights. Fabi points, "Vampire bars, they look condemned on the outside but you go in and you see the exterior is only an illusion. This one has been here a long time, I'm surprised it survived the hurricanes. They don't welcome strangers here, but there's five of us and that means safety in numbers. I was hoping we'd find someone on the street, but this is our best bet, for now. Don't count on being told the truth. I'm the only one old enough to compel anyone here. Elena, if you don't mind flirting it would be a big help."

Elena would do anything for Fabi, I think. She nods and smiles. The way she looks tonight there is not a male, mortal or immortal, that could resist her. I catch a sudden whiff of the Chanel she is wearing and think that this is going to be easy-peasy.

Fabi takes her arm, and they go into the bar. We follow, being careful not to look at them, though Damon's eyes are casting daggers at Fabi. There is a handsome, light skinned, black man behind the bar and soon he is fixing a frothy concoction for Elena. It's hard to hear over the blender, but I can hear words like "originals, wolves, Klaus," being said, which I would not have been brave enough to bring up. The bartender pours Elena's drink into a tall, flute-like glass, and adds a glass of red wine for Fabi, who slips a bill into his hand that I am sure far exceeds the value of their drinks. Bribes are nothing new to him, it was the Roman way of doing business, he says.

The three of us are playing pool, trying to pretend we don't know the two sitting at the bar. Elena is smiling and laughing, leaning over so the vamp bartender can get a look at her cleavage. Isolde painted her lips a deep pink, which is becoming against her tawny skin. Her hair is curled very fetchingly and the bartender is a marked man but doesn't know it. Any time now he will be telling Fabi what he wants to know, and Fabi is willing to take his time.

Stefan buys us a pitcher, and we get into a serious game of stars and stripes. We're all pretty evenly matched, so we can keep this game going as long as it takes. The bar is comfortable and it beats wandering the streets, but I'm wondering if we're spending too much time here. Was Fabi able to find out anything about Klaus? So far no one has tried to attack us, but I don't know what's going on and I'm not comfortable not knowing. I trust Fabi, he's smart, he's cagey, he knows more than all of us put together but that doesn't make me feel better.

The door swings open suddenly, and a tall good looking blond comes into the bar. She goes straight to the bartender and asks him a question, then turns to Fabi and Elena.

"Who are you and why are you trying to contact my brother?" Then, "You!" she says as she lays eyes on Elena, "What are you doing here?"

"The lady's with me," says Fabi, and he stands up and takes her hand and kisses it. He gestures to a chair, "Please sit down," and all of us come over and join them at the table."

It's showtime.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hello Rebekah, nice to see you; oh, wait a minute, it's not nice to see you." We had barely sat down when Damon opened his mouth. None of the Mystic Falls vampires seemed happy about Rebekah's presence.

She was pretty, but in a different way from Elena. Her hair is bleached a light blond which shows off her big blue eyes. She looks very young which makes me wonder when she was turned. Where Elena is slender, Rebekah is all curves. Brash and fearless, she knows she's the whole package. I look from one to the other, trying to decide if one was more beautiful and give up.

I felt sorry for her, she's surrounded but she doesn't know it-yet. Claude and me are on either side of her, Fabi is across the table, his eyes holding hers. The interrogation was about to start, and I'm eager to see how she held her own.

So far, so good. She has a lot of confidence, and if she's scared, she isn't showing it. She looks around at us, watching the Mystic Falls vamps across from her, avoiding Fabi's gaze for now because she doesn't know what he's up to. She doesn't know if any of us are on her side. It's written plainly on her face that she would be more than happy if Damon, Stefan, and Elena would disappear permanently. I think there's been a rivalry between her and Elena over one of them, and since Stefan is the nicest, it must have been him. It would be nice to know all of their stories, but that's not what we're here for tonight.

Fabi takes her hand. She tries to pull it away but he holds it tighter, letting her know she can't beat his strength. He says nothing, just strokes her hand for a moment, looking at her, which is making her clearly uncomfortable.

"You can't compel me, you know, I'm one of the oldest vampires, one of the Originals." She is trying to sound confident, but she's clearly uncomfortable. She's doubting herself which I don't think she is used to. She's fascinated somehow by Fabi, she must be sensing that he's different and she may not be as safe as she thinks.

"Ah yes, that. Did it ever occur to you that you may not be so 'original' as you think? Or that you may not be the oldest vampires in existence? What would you think if I told you I was over two thousand years old?" He smiled and lifted his eyebrows. "Well?" his face said.

"That's impossible," she whispered, "We were created by the original witch. My father had her turn us to vampires in order to protect us against the werewolves."

I can tell Fabi wants to burst into laughter over her naivety. "Ah, cherie, your father was sorely mistaken. The 'original' witches and vampires have been in existence so long that our origin is lost to human memory. Your father's education was lacking, for legends of witches and vampires date back even longer than the existence of the ancient Sumerians and Egyptians. When I went to Britain, I was attacked by a vampire who guarded one of the sacred groves of the druids, and that was during the reign of Vespasian—you know who that is, don't you? No? Your education must have been as inadequate as your father's, or maybe you didn't care much for school."

He lets go of her hand. "We are looking for your brother Klaus. My brother Tristan has an interest in meeting him, and it would be to your brother's advantage to agree. We may prove to be as much of a surprise to him as I am obviously proving to you."

She is obviously somewhere between shock and disbelief. She's just been told that what she has believed about herself all her life has proved to be untrue, and she doesn't want it to be true. There is something about Fabi, though, that is very compelling. He and Tristan have presence. Fabi has one last trick left and he's about to do it—prove to her that she can be compelled, if it's by the right vampire.

He takes her by the shoulders and forces her to look at him. "You are being compelled, by me, cherie," he says, "When I release you, you will realize what happened." Then he lets her go.

Her mouth opens but nothing comes out. "No," she whispers, "That didn't happen." But it did and she can't deny it.

He's looking at her with a "do you believe me now" expression on his face. He feels a little sorry for her, I can tell. She's shallow and vain and has always taken herself for granted. Someone like that is easy to shake, and she's badly shaken. She's never been compelled, and she doesn't like it. I wouldn't either.

"Tell Klaus we want to meet him tomorrow night. Eleven o'clock, in Jackson Square. Nice and public, with the tourists still out. Tristan will be with us, and we can all make our acquaintances. Oh, and tell your brother Tristan is aware of what he's planning; you might also let him know that Tristan and I are not vulnerable to werewolf bites. I think he'll find that interesting."

She shoves her chair back noisily and stomps out of the bar, slamming the door on her way out. Damon bursts into laughter and we join in. She probably would not have appreciated the humor we found in it. Damon announced that he would have liked to have a video of the whole thing. Fabi evidently agreed, for he announced to the bar that the next round of drinks was on him.

I was glad when Fabi said we were leaving. I was beginning to feel like we were being watched, though I was too young a vampire to be able to discern by who. The tip Fabi left was generous enough for anyone to understand that we did not want any information given out about us. He'd taken a chance compelling Rebekah, though it had been necessary. Fabi wanted Klaus to know what he was capable of, and that there was another vampire even more dangerous than him. It could be all out war if it came to it, and Klaus needed to be left guessing.

"Let's go to the Vieux Carre and enjoy alcohol and music." Fabi was assuming control again, but we could tell he wanted to get away from there as soon as he possibly could. I didn't know exactly what Tristan was expecting of him, but Fabi, who very rarely ruffled by things, seemed nervous. I wasn't exactly eager to stick around myself, and it was easy for all of us to go along.

The last time I was in New Orleans I was too young to enjoy the nightlife, but now I planned to make the most of the opportunity. We wandered down Bourbon Street, going in and out of the bars, seeing big names on the outside of some bars, others open to the street, music playing, competing with other clubs. There was even a club where the bouncer opened the doors, revealing teasing reflections in a mirror that frankly didn't reveal much.

It was fun to stroll, drink in hand, stopping to listen to the music at one club, then moving on to another when we got bored. But the mood was so infectious, the streets filled with the scent of blood of the tourists milling about, that it wasn't hard to get in the spirit. One club was playing some decent rock music that made me feel so good that I took Elena's hand and started to dance with her. After the repressive atmosphere of the vampire bar we felt relaxed and liberated, and just gave ourselves over to the music, much to Damon's chagrin she showed no inclination to want to dance with him.

We moved on, arm in arm, when the others grew restless and wanted to explore more. As we started to reach the darker end of the street, we began to see the vampires. Some of them stood around, looking, as if waiting for something. There were a few that looked like women, but on closer inspection were very close imitations of them—some strikingly beautiful. I recognized one or two, I'd seen them pick up men on the street and disappear with them. I don't know if it involved sex, or if they used themselves as bait.

We didn't want to talk to them, this was pleasure not business, but one called out to us, "Hey, I hear you were in the Rousseau tonight." We looked at each other, so much for a relaxing night.

"And who might you be?" Fabi asked wearily, all we wanted to do now was go home, it had been a long day.

"They call me Beauvron," he said, "This this tall skinny dark fellow is Joffrey," and then proceeded to introduce five other vampires, ignoring the transvestite prostitutes. "Word is spreading quickly that you questioned Rebekah and are looking for Klaus."

So this was the infamous vampire grapevine. We had only visited one vampire bar and suddenly people were talking about us. Elena was clinging to me for reassurance, and I kept my arm around her. I suddenly longed for Seattle where no one knew about us.

"Yes, I am looking for Klaus," Fabi said slowly,"but I'm in no hurry. It's been many years since I've been here and things seem to have changed considerably. In the old days, most vampires generally left one another alone. I seem to sense a general uneasiness in the air and I can't say I like it."

"It's because there's a war going on, vampires versus witches. Witches don't dare practice magic here for fear of getting caught." Joffrey's face was as dark as Fabi's, but he was taller and thinner, with his black coat flapping around him, he seemed almost skeletal.

"I've never heard of anything so ridiculous," Fabi snapped, "In the old days, vampires and the voodoos were often friends. Marie Laveau was a friend to many vampires. We had an agreement, we left alone the people she wished us to, and at times we would eliminate someone who was causing her trouble."

"Well, it's different now," said Beauvron, "Marcel has placed a ban on witches practicing magic. The witches have vowed to destroy the vampires and vice versa. It's all a power struggle, with Marcel at the head. No one knows what Klaus is up to."

"Besides world domination, of course," finished Joffrey, "He's very old, he claims to be the original vampire and the builder of New Orleans.

Claude and Fabi looked at one another and began to laugh. The other vampires looked confused, sensing that something was not quite right. They talked quietly among themselves until their spokesman Beauvron decided to speak.

"Is there something don't know that we should? You don't seem worried, but the rest of us are scared by all of this, quite frankly. We don't want to be ruled by either Klaus or Marcel. If there is something you know that we don't, please share it.

"Only this," answered Fabi, "Klaus is not the oldest vampire, as a matter of fact, he's not nearly as old as I am. And he didn't establish the city of New Orleans, the Spanish did. Now that's two lies right there that he's been telling you. And I think I need to talk to this Marcel, he needs to find out that there are vampires far more powerful than he is. As a matter of fact, he needs to be careful. I can protect him from Klaus if he's agreeable, but I won't guarantee that I'll give him any protection from me."

"That would be most welcome," Beauvron bowed, "This feud is tearing our little community apart. And if you add in the werewolf factor, things get even more confused."

"This is more than I care to deal with right now," Fabi held up his hand in dismissal, "If you want to find us, look for us in the Garden District or here in the Vieux Carre. We have come to bring some badly needed order to our old city. In the mean time I bid you goodnight."

We turned and left. I had frankly had enough of vampires for one night. I was hoping that Fabi didn't decide to find this Marcel, but I got lucky. We were all tired, and bed was sounding really appealing.

Damon, Fabi, and Claude broke off to go hunting, the rest of us were content to go back to the hotel room. We decided to get one last drink and listen to music while we finished, when someone tapped me on the shoulder.

A tall, light skinned black male, muscles bulging beneath his shirt was standing in front of us. "I understand you want to talk to me," he said, smiling, only there was no friendliness behind the smile.

I let Stefan handle it. "No, not tonight. We're not really looking for you anyway."

"Well, that's not what Joffrey said," I hated the Marcel's smile never reached his eyes.

"So, you're in contact with all the vampires in the Quarter?" Stefan asked, he was buying time because this was not his fight, and he didn't want to talk to this guy. This was a small, tight world these vampires inhabited.

"Actually, I have control over all the vampires in the city. Isn't it the same for you?"

"No," I found my courage and spoke, "We like to be left alone. There's other vampires where we live, but we never see them. Live and let live is our motto—no one needs to be in control, so if we were to come in contact with each other, it wouldn't result in war.

Marcel laughed as he hear this. It did sound sort of lame, but that's Seattle for you. Laid back city, laid back vamps. Or maybe Tristan had the means to protect us, since it also meant protecting Isolde.

Fortunately, Fabi chose that moment to appear. Before he even saw him, Marcel found himself lying on the street, Fabi's foot on his throat. Marcel tried to rise, but Fabi wouldn't let him. He was angry, that cold controlled angry he did so well.

"Who told you about us?" he asked, pushing his foot down harder, "Who told you?"

"Jesus, man, lighten up. It was Rebekah. After she left the bar she came and found me. Wouldn't do to let big brother know."

"You mean Klaus?" Fabi removed his foot and pulled Marcel up by his shirt, Marcel was startled at the strength of the Roman. Had Rebekah told him how old he was? The look on his face revealed nothing, but I was guessing that Rebekah had held information back.

Marcel was breathing heavily, obviously in pain. He evidently had decided not to challenge Fabi, and the little Roman had a look on his face like he'd kill him just for the fun of it.

"No, not Klaus, Elijah. She doesn't like or trust Klaus, with good reason. I don't know who you are, but you are in over your heads. If I were you I'd leave town, now."

Fabi smiled that maddening charming smile of his. "If you were me, I'm sure you would, but I'm not you. You know nothing, and you're going to find out just how little you know. You can tell Klaus we're looking for him. That's all you need to say. Now, if you don't mind, we're heading back to our hotel, it's been a long day."


End file.
